Politics|Trump Meets With Four Candidates for National Security Adviser

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Trump Meets With Four Candidates for National Security Adviser

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President Trump boarding Air Force One after a rally on Saturday in Melbourne, Fla. He has been searching for a replacement for Michael T. Flynn, who resigned last week at the president’s request.CreditCreditAl Drago/The New York Times

PALM BEACH, Fla. — The sweepstakes for national security adviser expanded on Sunday as President Trump met with four candidates for the job but signaled that he may yet bring more to Florida for interviews.

Mr. Trump has been searching for a replacement for Michael T. Flynn, his first national security adviser, who resigned last week at the president’s request because he had misled Vice President Mike Pence and others about a phone call with Russia’s ambassador.

The president’s first choice to succeed Mr. Flynn turned down the job, so the White House arranged for four other contenders to fly to his resort, Mar-a-Lago. Mr. Trump met with John R. Bolton, a former ambassador to the United Nations; Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, a top Army strategist; Lt. Gen. Robert L. Caslen Jr., superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point; and Keith Kellogg, a retired three-star general serving as acting national security adviser.

But Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a White House spokeswoman, said that was not the complete field. “We may have some additional names and meetings” on Monday, she said. She added that Mr. Trump might also summon back one or more of the four he talked with on Sunday for an additional talk.

Mr. Trump told reporters on Saturday that he had a favorite, although he did not identify the candidate. “I’ve been thinking about someone for the last three or four days; we’ll see what happens,” he said. “I’m meeting with that person. They’re all good; they’re all great people.”

In private conversations, the president has praised Mr. Bolton and has noted that many people want him to pick General McMaster, although Mr. Trump seemed convinced that the general had said something unflattering about him during last year’s campaign, according to associates who asked not to be identified sharing private conversations.

The White House has had trouble filling some senior positions in part because so many experienced Republicans criticized Mr. Trump during the campaign, and he has vetoed some choices over that. Ms. Sanders said Mr. Trump was entitled to have a team that was on his side. “If you don’t support the president’s agenda, you shouldn’t have a job in the White House,” she said.

On a busy holiday weekend, Mr. Trump also attended part of a strategy session on finding a replacement for the Affordable Care Act.

Peter Baker reported from Palm Beach, and Maggie Haberman from New York.